From anxious to annoyed to amazed to horror to impressed and back to horror, Joe never cycled through so many emotions so quickly. It's a wonder he didn't get a heart attack.

He cradled The Book in his arms as they ran down the hall and stairs in a flash, not even looking back at Houdini's escape boxes they left behind. They passed by surprised guards who didn't even bother to stop them. The men hid in the nearest rooms as soon as they saw Mysterio sprinting down the hall, waving a gun around like a psychopath.

Behind Joe, Izzy huffed, "I can't believe that actually worked!"

"Wait a minute," Sam said. "You were going to judo kick a madman holding a gun to your head without even knowing that you could even do that in the first place?!"

Fred leaped over a guard cowering in a fetal position dead center in the hall. "What if he, y'know, shot you?"

A bullet whizzed past Izzy's shoulder and hit a column, creating a mini explosion of marble. She laughed nervously. "Day's not over yet."

"Can't you magic us up a bulletproof vest? Or teleport us out of here?"

"No! And even if I could, running for my life isn't the optimal conditions for concentration!"

Eugene ran ahead. "Enough chatter! Just run."

They slammed past the front door and into the freezing rain. A snoozing Mr. Jackson awoke with a strain, goose-like cry and fell over into a patch of mud. They reached the car and all dove straight in, landing on top of each other in a cold, wet heap on the seats.

Joe got up first. He crawled into the seat behind Charles, The Book— thankfully— still in his arms. "Drive! Drive, drive!"

"Wait," Sam said. "I gotta close the d— AH!"

No hesitation, Charles floored it, zooming down the road faster than Joe thought an old limousine could go. Joe's friends all pitched. They slipped on the wet floor and hot thrown into the back row. The limo tilted and the door slammed shut.

Joe reclined in his row, letting out a breath he didn't know he was holding. A moment of peace descended on them as the scenery passed in a blur and the hotel shrunk smaller and smaller behind them. Charles slowed to a normal driving speed.

Joe didn't get a good look at their surroundings when they arrived, and he definitely didn't when they were fleeing for their lives. The hotel must have been in the middle of the woods because they were driving down a deserted, tree-lined lane with no other cars around.

"Uuuuuuh," Fred said. "I don't wanna be the 'I think we got company' guy, but—"

Through the wet windshield, another smaller car behind them painted black and blue was gaining on them. A man leaned out of the passenger side window, wielding something small and dark in his hand.

Sam sat up, his eyes hid by fog on his glasses. "Can't this thing go any faster?"

"Kid," Charles grunted, "I can't even see."

"What?!"

"Duck!" Izzy shrieked.

They hit the seats just as the back window exploded, sending in large shards of glass and rain. Eugene cried out in pain.

"Eugene!" Izzy said.

She had her hand on his shoulder, her green eyes wide and panicky. Eugene's eyes were screwed shut, his palm pressed to his forehead. A trickle of blood ran down his temple.

"Were you hit?" Joe asked.

"No, no. It was just a piece of flyaway glass."

"We gotta find a way to lose that maniac!" Izzy said.

"There might be a way. Joe, there's—"

"Duck!" Fred called out.

The BANG! of Mysterio's gun was softened by the roar of the wind and rain. Another explosion of shattering glass. The front windshield this time.

Charles chuckled. "That's better."

"Joe!" Eugene said. "I think there's a spell in The Book. Some sort of holey worm transportation? If you can find and cast it we may be able to get out of this in an instant."

"Right!" Joe flipped through The Book with trembling hands as fast as he could. He hovered over it to block out the rain that'd damage The Book.

Joe couldn't help but think that even if he found the spell, he didn't know if he'd be capable of performing it. He could barely perform practical magic, let alone the real thing, aside from a few outbursts he was barely able to control. He had a flashback of his abysmal talent show tryout; of the usher at Houdini's show mocking him, and he couldn't help but feel utterly powerless.

"Duck!" Sam's voice was shrill. "Again."

"Then get down!" Fred shouted, followed by a shuffle, a thunk, and Sam crying out in surprise. Joe imagined Fred yanked him down by force, just missing the bullet that whizzed by and lodged itself into the glove box.

He tried to put his worries way, way back into his mind so he could focus on finding the spell. He needed to succeed, otherwise, they all'd be dead.

Something caught Joe's eyes. He paused and turned back a couple pages before landing on a page entitled The Orthodox Space Warp. Underneath the title was a passage he had to read.

Joe punched in the right coordinates to Houdini's house and read the passage, running through it so fast the words bled together. He waited for a second for the spell to take hold, but—

"Why doesn't that stupid Book ever work when we need it?" Sam said.

"Uuuuuuh," Fred said. "I don't wanna be the 'he's gaining on us' guy—"

"Then stop doing that!"

Joe made the mistake of looking. Mysterio's car was catching up to them. Through the rain, Joe saw a faint blue glow on Mysterio's finger where he wore that gaudy, blue ring.

Joe frowned. "What the—"

The limo hit a bump and they all were tossed into the air for a second. The Book hit Joe on the head. He ignored the glass that scraped his arms and went back to scanning the page, looking for something he missed.

"I need at least two people to read this thing!"

Fred climbed over the seat towards him. "Fine. I'll—"

The limo hit another bump, harder this time. Fred was thrown back to the rear, landing on Sam. "Never mind."

Izzy leaned over the back of Joe's seat, her face sickly green. "Tell me what to say!"

"Here." Joe showed her the page. "Just read it."

"I— I can't. Just tell me!"

Joe didn't want to waste time arguing with her. He told her what to say. "It needs to be at the same time. On the count of three, alright?"

Izzy nodded.

"Okay. One, two, three!"

"From North and South, from West and East,
Close the distance from A to B!"

Existence ripped in half in front of them, expanding into a swirling green gateway through time and space. The portal glowed like a miniature sun; steam rose from the limo's metal exterior. Joe's clothes instantly dried. He shielded his eye from its blaze. Izzy, however, stared right into it, her mouth agape and her face washed with green light.

Charles stomped on the brakes "HOLY—" The screeching tires covered his swear. They were going too fast to stop. The limo skidded straight into the portal and they warped.

Joe time traveled with The Book plenty of times, but this was the first time he warped with an entire vehicle. Imagine being in a tin can on the world's wildest roller-coaster that's suddenly been flung into the air. The six of them screamed as they were tossed around like rocks in a dryer. One of them (who wasn't Joe) shouted, "Mama!"

As soon as it started, it ended. The limo bounced like a basketball as the portal deposited them back on solid ground. It spun in a few circles and lurched to a stop, flinging the teens one last time.

After a dazed second, Joe's vision cleared and he could make out who'd landed on top of him in the commotion. His vision focused and he stared into the bright green eyes of… Sam.

"Dude. Off." Joe sat, Sam sliding off him in the process.

Sam's glasses were missing. He wore Fred's hat. "Sorry, sorry. Have you seen my glasses?"

"We'll check the floor." Joe peered over the seats. "Is everyone okay?"

Fred shot a thumbs-up over the seats. "I'm nauseous!"

Izzy swayed as she got up, and grabbed Eugene's arm for support. Sam's glasses were upside down on her face. "I'm blind!"

"I'm blind!" Sam yelled from the floor.

Eugene slumped against the seat. "I'm still bleeding…"

Charles rested his forehead on the steering wheel. "And I'm going to the loony bin."

After Joe instructed Fred to lean out the window if he was going to puke and let Sam and Izzy know that they could help each other out with their simultaneous blindness, Joe mustered up the needed charisma to calm Charles down.

He slid over to the passenger seat and grinned. "That was some grade A driving you did back there, Charles. I don't know how you managed to get us back here in record time."

Joe wished he could've warned the guy before he did what he had to. Charles shivered as he glanced from Joe to the window.

"But that portal…"

"What portal?"

"Didn't you see? The green rift, the glow?"

"You must have been in the zone so hard you blacked out and started hallucinating. I heard that happens with people who are good at things."

Joe patted the man on the back and grinned wider, hoping that Charles didn't notice the sweat dripping down his temple.

To his relief, Charles nodded. He straightened up and dusted bits of glass off his suit. "Huh. I guess you're right, kid. I was pretty good. Heh."

He smirked and Joe sighed, relieved. He turned back to Eugene. "Now let's get you some medical attention."

Houdini and Mrs. Bess arrived a few moments after them. They regrouped in the dining room and explained everything that happened (minus opening a portal through space) while Mrs. Bess dressed Eugene's wound.

"I'm sorry we left your stuff behind," Joe said. "And the damage to the limo."

Houdini waved it off. "Think nothing of it, my boy. Just means that now there's more space to fill with even more impressive props. I'll have to plan more elaborate shows in the future."

"Ever the optimist, this one," Fred muttered.

Houdini turned to Eugene and appraised him, impress. "It takes a real man to stick with his friends and do what's right. I know someone who could use a loyal assistant like you."

Eugene's jaw dropped. "Y-you're hiring me as an assistant, sir?"

"Well, no, but I could set you up with a friend of mine. Of course, you can speak to me whenever you need."

"It would be an honor, sir."

Joe clapped him on the back.

Fred playfully nudged his shoulder. "Way to go, man!"

"It's getting late," Mrs. Beth said. "Shouldn't you kids be heading back home?"

Joe nodded. "It's been great."

"Mostly," Sam muttered.

Handshakes and a few hugs around; Sam congratulating Eugene, Izzy thanking Houdini for everything, Fred asking Mrs. Bess for the recipe for her cookies.

Houdini firmly shook Joe's hand and said, "I see great things for you in the future, Joseph."

Joe smiled, hoped he wasn't grinning like a giddy idiot, and thanked Houdini. A part of him wanted to remark under his breath that whether he did or not, Houdini would never know, but there was a spark in Houdini's eyes that gave Joe the feeling that the man knew more than he was letting on. The spark was short-lived, however. Houdini winked at him and Joe shook the feeling off.

After their final goodbyes, the five of them left the residence and walked down the block. The sun was hidden behind homes so only a few golden rays escaped past the darkening clouds in the sky. The neighborhood was vacant, the last of their company kids returning home just as the street lights turned on.

"This is goodbye." Eugene turned to them. "It's been… not fun, but a word very, very, very close to it."

Joe gave him a half hug followed by a light punch to the shoulder. "Take care, dude."

Sam and Fred followed suit with a handshake and fist bump, respectively.

Izzy hugged Eugene, who looked like he was about to faint. "Remember to stand up for yourself. Don't let people take advantage of you again, okay?"

"I will, Isadora... If you remember to do the same?"

She stared at him, wide-eyed, before hugging him harder.

Fred rolled his eyes. "Yeesh. You two want a room?"

Joe flipped to the transporter page. "You guys ready?"

"Wait!" Izzy grabbed onto Fred's arm.

He furrowed his brow. "Uh, not that I mind, but—"

"I don't want to warp again unless I'm holding onto something sturdy."

And with a final wave goodbye from Eugene, they warped back home.

They landed back on their high school stage in a burst of green light. The janitor didn't budge. The kissing couple was gone. They all hit the stage with a thud, jolting the teacher awake.

He clapped as if he saw something moderately impressive. "Excellent job, Joseph. Well done. You're in. Next!"

No one came on stage after that. The teacher fell asleep again almost immediately.

After a moment of silence, the four of them laughed, the tension from the last few hours bubbling away.

Izzy's laugh turned into a long groan. She rubbed her hands over her face. "Ugh! I can't, I'm so, can't even… Ugh!"

"Poignant," Sam said.

"If that happens to you guys often, I can't believe you guys aren't exhausted all the time. Or crazy. Or dead."

Joe scooted closer to her. "What about you? I can't believe you know actual magic."

"Wanna explain what that was about?" Fred asked.

She scratched the back of her head. "I told you my dad's a magician."

"Yeah, but I figured it was more rabbit-out-of-a-hat than—"

"Manipulating reality?" Sam suggested.

Fred snapped his fingers. "That."

She blushed. She stared at the floor, but she was smiling.

"Can you teach me magic?" Joe asked.

Izzy looked at him and Joe bit his lip. The girl was clearly shy and overwhelmed by everything that's happened today. She most likely wouldn't be up to it. He shouldn't have sprung the question on her so suddenly. Joe also didn't want her to get the idea that he was using her.

She shrugged. "I guess I could try. I've never taught anyone, well, anything to be honest."

"Did none of your friends from your last school know?"

Izzy twisted her earrings. Joe noticed that the little hourglasses had green sand in them that moved when she flipped them. "I never had real friends before."

The three of them laughed until she trained her glistening eyes back on the floor. She was telling the truth.

"How have you never had friends before?" Fred asked.

Sam elbowed him. "You don't have to answer that."

Joe smiled and playfully ribbed her. "Well, you got us now."

She smiled wide, and he was relieved. "Joe, I gotta ask you something."

"What is it?"

"I was wondering if you'd mind … uh, if you'd mind telling me if you had a favorite falafel stand?"

Joe blinked, confused. He was sure he looked just as confused as when she started talking in pig Latin. "A falafel stand?"

"Yeah. You know what they say: A falafel a day is… a falafel a day? Haha."

Fred was the only one who laughed. When he noticed Joe and Sam quizzical look, he said, "What? It's funny cuz it's true."

Joe rolled his eyes then turned his attention back to Izzy. "Um yeah. There's one on Joralemon I go to with my uncle when he's in town. Why?"

"Great! Let's go there now. Right now. My treat." She hopped off the stage and walked backward to the doors. She motioned for the three of them to follow.

Fred jumped down and followed her. "Say no more. I'm there."

Joe and Sam shrugged at each other, silently agreeing to go along with it and followed the other two.

"You really want to eat after you puked a half hour ago?" Sam asked Fred.

"Hey, my tanks empty."

The two passed through the double doors, still discussing the pros and cons of eating after throwing up.

Izzy grabbed Joe's arm before they passed. He looked at the top of her head while she stared intently at a crack on the floor.

"What's up?"

"Thank you." She looked him in the eyes and smiled, small but genuine. For the first time, he noticed that there was a ring of brown around her pupils.

Joe couldn't help but smile back, even though he wasn't exactly sure what she was thanking him for. "No problem."

Lauren found himself venturing into the shady part of town carrying a box with a few exotic baubles and "historical artifacts" he intended on selling. Even with Houdini's death four years ago, he wasn't having any luck finding new gigs and times were changing. With business waning and a pregnant wife to feed, he needed to find a new way to make money. Thankfully, that old paddy, Abban O'Heyne, who owned the pawn shop always gave him a good deal.

He shouldered the door open, the bells above the door frame ringing. The pawn shop smelled like an abandoned church with a hint of odeur de rat mort. About what Lauren expected since O'Heyne could never figure out how to open a window.

However, it wasn't him behind the counter as usual. As Lauren passed the shelves of cracked antiques and dusty books, he noticed more details about the man who'd taken the owners usual place. He was a brown man, maybe an Indian, in a long black cloak over a faded suit. The hood of the cloak was pulled over his face so most of his features were obscured save for his lower face, but Lauren caught a flash of something: a monocle over his left eye.

Lauren never met the man, but something about the man felt oddly familiar.

He placed the box on the counter. "Where's O'Heyne?"

"He couldn't make it in today. I'm filling in for the old buffoon—I mean, old chap."

Lauren quirked a brow. Since when did O'Heyne have such odd friends? No matter, it wasn't any of his business, and he didn't really care anyhow. "I'm here to—"

"I know why you're here, Anderson. But this junk doesn't interest me."

Lauren blanched but held his composure. He chalked up this strange man knowing his name to O'Heyne mentioning him in a conversation.

"Junk? This stuff is—"

"Forgeries. Fakes. Copies." The man flipped through items in the box with each word. "Only a fool would believe that this," he held up a sack of fake gold coins, "is Blackbeard's secret treasure, or that this," he pulled out a parchment, "is Da Vinci's missing manuscripts. Doesn't match his handwriting when held up to harsh scrutiny."

The man ripped up the paper into tiny pieces and threw them into the air like confetti. But they didn't just flutter down, they caught fire. The green flames died as quickly as they appeared, the ashes of his faked manuscript falling and collecting into piles onto the counter.

To add insult to injury, the man scooped the ashes into his palm and blew them like a kiss in his face. He looked at Lauren with a cocky grin.

Lauren wiped the dust off his face. For the first time in years, he was stunned speechless. This man was a wizard of sorts and, for whatever reason, he was taunting him. He balled his fist. Well, if this was a game, then he could certainly play.

He smiled and nodded like he was impressed. "Nice trick, old sport. You know, I myself am quite adept in magic as well."

A wave of his hand and the ring on his finger glowed a vibrant blue. Instantly, a thunderclap shook the building and it began sprinkling outside. Lauren's grin dropped when he caught a look on the man's face.

The corners of his lips twitched. He busted out laughing, doubling over and pounding his hand on the counter repeatedly like he just heard the world's funniest joke.

"You mean that ring of yours?" he gasped in between laughs. "Puh-lease! Yes, while the Lapis Manalis is very impressive, you can't claim it's power as your own. Innate magic won't enter your family for another generation."

Again, Lauren was stunned. He didn't know whether to be offended that this lunatic mocked him for controlling the very weather, or taken aback by the casual way this man alluded to knowing the future of his family tree.

It wasn't too much of a surprise that a wizard had his own means to see into the future like he did all those many, many years ago. Lauren saw right through him; he was using his knowledge to manipulate him into kowtowing to his whims (whatever they were), a tactic Lauren knew all too well. He wasn't about to play into this man's hand.

"Sir, if you're not interested in any of my wares, then we have no business here today."

"Oh, but I am interested, you see. I'm quite interested in the Lapis Manalis."

"It's not for sale. It was my poor great grandmother's wedding ring."

The man scoffed. "Come now, Anderson. We both know you stole that ring from "gypsies" on your holiday across Europe, but I don't really care about that. That's all in the past."

Lauren straightened up and fixed his suit, intent on showing no weakness. "No deal." He turned on his heel headed towards the door. "Feel free to keep the junk."

The man sighed. "Very well. I tried."

Lauren froze, but not of his own volition. Despite his best efforts, he couldn't so much as twitch any part of his body. It was if he was trying to move in solid, ten-ton stone. A bolt of fear ran up his spine and kick-started his heart into overdrive.

Through the reflection of the window, Lauren watched the man glide around the counter so smoothly as if he were walking on air. In his hand was a long metal cane with an hourglass of glowing green sand that Lauren recognized. He had a vivid memory of dodging it as a beautiful woman tried to pummel him to death with it.

The man moved in front of him, the smile on his face wider. He plucked the ring from Lauren's finger and put it on his own. "I'll take that. Really, it was wasted on you anyway. You see, my purpose is far greater, but I'm sure you don't care about any of that."

Lauren struggled to move his jaw and speak. It felt like it was bolted shut. "What did you… do to me?"

The man shook his head like he was disappointed Lauren didn't ask about his great plan. "It's a paralysis spell, or maybe it was a localized time-freezing spell. It should wear off in an hour or two. Maybe a whole day. You may be permanently paralyzed. Your wife is pregnant with the only child you'll ever have, so I don't really care what happens to you now."

"Why not do that… in the first place? Why mock me?"

"How could I pass up the chance to mess with the great-great-grandfather of one of my most hated rivals. Mainly it was indirect, petty vengeance, though in my experience, that's the fifth—no sixth— best kind."

The man kicked Lauren over. He crashed to his side a violent shiver ran down his body like every part of him was asleep. The man chuckled.

"Now if you excuse me, I must pay a visit to a dear old friend. It's been so long, I hope he recognizes me." He pulled out a silver pocket watch from the inside of his suit. He wound it and smiled down at Lauren, and for the first and only time, he saw the man's face.

"Tata."

A blinding flash of golden light enveloped him. When it vanished, the man was no longer there, leaving Lauren Anderson on the floor, paralyzed and alone, with only the muffled sound of rain to keep him sane.